1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the present invention are generally related to the field of secure wireless networks. More particularly, embodiments of the present invention are related to an auditable and track-able key distribution and installation system and method for wireless networks.
2. Description
The requirements for key distribution in enterprise wireless networks are inherently different from home networks. Some enterprise and commercial networks can be really large, consisting of hundreds of nodes and requiring multiple people to install. For security reasons, some sort of secret (i.e., key) needs to be transferred to the nodes for authentication. If the secret is one that is shared amongst all of the nodes in the wireless network, and the secret is stolen or copied by an attacker, then the entire network is compromised.
Thus, what is needed is a system and method for installation of a wireless network that provides a secret (i.e., key) at each node in the network that does not compromise the entire network if the secret is stolen or copied. What is also needed is a system and method for installation of a wireless network that distributes auditable and track-able keys to the nodes in a manner that enables the detection of key copying, key stealing, and other attacks on the network.